''Desert Nightmare'' is a free-ware horror-puzzle game created by Kelven, the same person who created the horror game ''VideoGame/{{Schuld}}''. A teenage girl named Sandra Richmont is on a trip with her parents but, after mouthing off to them too much, they leave her at a desolate gas station in the middle of the desert. Unable to call her parents and too far from home to go back, she continues on to the next city, an eerie place called Dusty Creek.

The game was translated from German into English by [[http://rpgmaker.net/users/AznChipmunk/ Azn Chipmunk]], who also translated ''Schuld''.

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!''VideoGame/DesertNightmare'' contains examples of:

* AHouseDivided: Jake and Alan don't care much for each other, and both keep letting Sandra know as much.* AbandonedMine: Connected to [[spoiler:the original Dusty Creek]].* ActionSurvivor: All of the main characters.* AdultFear: Not only were all of the traumas Sandra experienced brought on by her parents abandoning her, but [[spoiler: they themselves get into an accident later on and are severely injured, without ever finding out if Sandra was alright.]]** AbusiveParents[=/=]ParentalAbandonment* AgentScully: Alan, who insists there's no such thing as the supernatural [[spoiler:even after seeing the monsters himself]].* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler:Jake, Alan, and all the residents of Dusty Creek.]] In the beginning, Sandra counts as well.* [[spoiler:AttemptedRape: Jake to Sandra. Alan steps in.]]* CharacterPortrait: Only important characters have them.* [[spoiler: CrazyJealousGuy[=/=]DomesticAbuser: Jake to Sandra, seemingly out of nowhere. A nightmare Sandra has [[{{Foreshadowing}} foreshadows]] this.]]* DisproportionateRetribution: Sandra starts out the game as a BrattyTeenageDaughter, and her punishment for acting like a normal teenage girl is... [[spoiler:being attacked by monsters and imprisoned by cursed townspeople, as well as being called an "uneducated bitch" and nearly being raped by people she considered her friends.]]* EverythingTryingToKillYou* FanDisservice: A lot easier to accomplish, being an RPG Maker game, but [[spoiler: Jake's fantasy of killing Alan and having sex with/possibly raping Sandra]] definitely stands out.* FanTranslation: By Azn Chipmunk. In some parts of the game, the original German is still there.* {{Foreshadowing}}: When Sandra first meets Jake, he tells her that he's been in Dusty Creek since the day prior. [[spoiler: Then, we find out that the town was cursed to have anyone who lives or stays there for too long become aggressive and cruel. This explains Jake's sudden aggression and possessiveness toward Sandra.]]* GhostTown: Dusty Creek.* HaveYouToldAnyoneElse: [[spoiler:The Police Chief]] asks Sandra if anyone knows she's in Dusty Creek. She claims that her parents know, and [[spoiler:he acts like her lying is a BerserkButton]].* HearingVoices: [[spoiler:When she stumbles upon the Indians' mass grave, Sandra starts hearing their whispers to 'kill everyone'.]]* HellHotel: The motel Sandra stays at in Dusty Creek.* HumanoidAbomination: Sandra states that she isn't sure whether the monsters are 'human' or not. [[spoiler:Judging from the description of the curse, they are.]]* JustifiedSavePoint: Glowing red symbols are used as save points, with Sandra always commenting that "Somehow, it gives me a strange feeling..."** OminousSavePrompt: Sometimes, the player will suddenly find themselves on the Saving screen. This usually occurs right before or right after a major event.* JustifiedTitle: Sandra suffers nightmares whenever she tries to sleep in Dusty Creek, [[spoiler:as well as years after she escapes]].* KickTheDog: After walking in on [[spoiler:Jake trying to assault Sandra]], [[spoiler:Alan]] abruptly calls her an "uneducated bitch."* LetsSplitUpGang: Despite stating that he will protect Sandra, Jake never protests when she goes off on her own, and even goes wandering about alone as well. [[spoiler:Their separation leads to both Alan and Sandra getting captured by the townspeople.]] * MagicalNativeAmerican: The Old Man.* MurderTheHypotenuse: [[spoiler: Jake fantasizes about doing this to Alan, and succeeds later on.]]* MyCarHatesMe: Cars always seem to malfunction around Dusty Creek. [[spoiler:Even after the trio gets Alan's car, it doesn't take them far.]]* NoItemUseForYou: At one point, Sandra loses her backpack and has to find it again before she can use any items.* NoOntologicalInertia: In the ending, after [[spoiler:breaking the curse]], [[spoiler:the Indian zombie]] crumbles to dust before Sandra's eyes. She later learns that [[spoiler:all of the surviving townsfolk of Dusty Creek ended up as burnt corpses]].* OnlySmartPeopleMayPass: Lots of locked chests and some doors require some decoding. There's always a note or two around that holds the key.* PointOfNoReturn: After [[spoiler:leaving Dusty Creek and ending up at the original settlement]].* PoliceBrutality: Inside the station, Sandra finds evidence of this in the interrogation room: blood stains, scattered teeth, and a tape recording of an 'interview'. [[spoiler:Later, she nearly becomes the victim of this.]]* PuzzleBoss: Any encounters tend to play out like this, with Sandra having to figure out how to evade her pursuers before they get their hands... or claws... on her.** BossArenaIdiocy: In most cases, this involves luring the enemy into a hazard, like knocking over a barrel and getting them to slip on the contents. Often you can get them to try and cross this several times.* SanitySlippage: [[spoiler:The longer you stay in Dusty Creek, the more unstable and aggressive you become. Jake arrived the day before Sandra and Alan...]]* SavePoint: The flashing symbols scattered throughout the game. Sandra always states that they give her a strange feeling.* [[HeKnowsTooMuch She Knows Too Much]]: After getting caught eavesdropping, Sandra gets chased by the people she was spying on. [[spoiler:Of course, they were planning to kill her ''anyway''...]]* ShootTheDog: [[spoiler:Alan abruptly insulting Sandra may have been a gambit to draw Jake's ire and distract him long enough for her to escape. If so, it worked too well...]]* ShopliftAndDie: At one point you [[CrueltyIsTheOnlyOption have]] to steal from the store. The next day, the shopkeeper threatens to kill you if you return. If you don't heed his warning, he starts walking towards you...* ShoutOut: ** The save symbols are reminiscent of ''VideoGame/SilentHill3'', and a large majority of the music was ripped from ''VideoGame/SilentHill2''.* SoleSurvivor: [[spoiler:The Old Man]] is heavily implied to be the only survivor of [[spoiler:the massacre that led to Dusty Creek's curse]]. [[spoiler:Sandra ends up the only survivor of the trio.]]* TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse: [[spoiler:While some of the cursed villagers were born deformed, others look perfectly healthy, but are unnaturally aggressive and cruel.]]* TownWithADarkSecret: Dusty Creek, natch. [[spoiler:In the past, the miners massacred some Indians who were protesting their digging gold out of their sacred mountains. As a result, they were cursed: children born in Dusty Creek were either born in warped, monsterous forms or looking normal, but with dark and twisted natures.]]* UntrustingCommunity* WomanInWhite: [[spoiler:Sandra, after being caught and changed into a simple white dress. Also the poor woman she saw right before getting caught.]]* {{Yandere}}: [[spoiler:Jake.]]* YourMindMakesItReal: If you don't remember to use [[spoiler:the dreamcatcher]] after obtaining it, Sandra's nightmares turn deadly.